Rib Cage

BOSTON -- Strange things happen all the time. I read the tabloids. UFOs piloted by Elvis (what do you think: the new Elvis or the old Elvis?) routinely land on people's lawns. I didn't used to believe in such stories, but then you tell me Glenn Davis is on the disabled list again, and I guess I've got to believe anything.This can't be true, can it? It's April, right? He's played one game, right? Talk about durability. Was this guy made in Detroit? Heck, the cherry blossoms outlasted him this year.

MINNEAPOLIS - Orioles pitching prospect Kevin Gausman is scheduled to have an MRI down at Triple-A Norfolk on Friday and the club hopes to get more clarity about a mysterious injury that popped up Thursday. Gausman woke up early Thursday morning with pain in his rib cage, something that was uncomfortable enough to interrupt his sleep at 4 a.m., according to player development director Brian Graham. He was evaluated by the doctors at Norfolk, who initially believed the injury was an intercostal muscle strain.

MINNEAPOLIS - Orioles pitching prospect Kevin Gausman is scheduled to have an MRI down at Triple-A Norfolk on Friday and the club hopes to get more clarity about a mysterious injury that popped up Thursday. Gausman woke up early Thursday morning with pain in his rib cage, something that was uncomfortable enough to interrupt his sleep at 4 a.m., according to player development director Brian Graham. He was evaluated by the doctors at Norfolk, who initially believed the injury was an intercostal muscle strain.

Remains of great ape discovered Spanish researchers say they've found the remains of an extinct species of great ape that may have been the last ancestor we shared with gorillas, chimpanzees and orangutans. Pierolapithecus catalaunicus ate mostly fruit, climbed trees in an upright posture and, at 77 pounds, was a little smaller than a chimpanzee. Salvadore Moya-Sola and colleagues at the Miguel Crusafont Institute of Paleontology in Barcelona say the creature's ancestors probably came from Africa, where primates most likely originated.

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Second baseman Bill Ripken suffered a strained muscle in his rib cage over the weekend and may have to be placed on the 15-day disabled list.Precautionary X-rays revealed no structural damage to the rib cage and no sign of lung inflammation, so it appears that Ripken suffered a strained intercostal muscle, perhaps while making a difficult defensive play during the recent four-game series against the Oakland Athletics."I don't know exactly when it happened," Ripken said.

Astros: Houston plays 23 of its next 28 games on the road.Brewers: John Jaha left in the fifth inning with tightness in his upper back, and his status is day-to-day. He went 1-for-14 in the series.Cubs: Outfielder Lance Johnson left after three innings because of tightness in his right hip flexor. His status is day-to-day.Mets: Catcher Tim Spehr left in the third inning with a pulled muscle in his right rib cage. He was replaced by Jim Tatum, catching for the first time since July 30, 1995, when he was with the Rockies.

BaseballRoyals: Placed IF Terry Pendleton (strained left rib cage) on 15-day DL, retroactive to June 11. Recalled P Bart Evans from Triple-A Omaha.CollegeFranklin & Marshall: Announced that William Marshall has been reassigned from director of athletics to special assistant for athletics, and that he will retire in October 1999. Named Peter Van Buskirk interim director of athletics.Furman: Named George Harrelson assistant football coach.FootballRaiders: Signed OL Derrick Graham.SoccerMetroStars (MLS)

BALTIMORE'S JOHNNY ECK, called "The Most Remarkable Man Alive!" by Robert Ripley, is dead.Eck was born with no legs, a deformity that propelled him to an early career as an astonishingly agile sideshow oddity, and a featured role in the 1932 cult film classic, "Freaks." He died in his sleep Jan. 5 in the East Baltimore home where he and his twin brother Robert were born. He was 79.Eck is buried in a Greenmount Cemetery family plot. It was a quiet leave-taking for a man whose joy in life was later doused by disappointment in the changing world around him.While known to his international following as the "King of the Freaks," Eck was known to Baltimore as a gifted painted screen artist with a soaring spirit.

PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. -- The Baltimore Orioles pride themselves on the quality of their young pitching, but the two most valuable arms in the organization did not handle the Texas Rangers very effectively yesterday.Right-hander Ben McDonald, who had not been scored upon in his first two exhibition appearances, gave up five runs in four innings. Relief pitcher Gregg Olson followed and gave up a run on two hits in his second one-inning appearance of the spring, but the Orioles came back to score a 10-inning, 10-7 Grapefruit League victory at Charlotte County Stadium.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Only the Orioles, it seems, could have this many plot lines develop during a simple getaway game against the worst team in the American League. Only the Orioles could see not one, but two of the guys who are competing for the starting second base job get hurt in a span of two innings. Only they could have that overshadow the mood yesterday afternoon as Karim Garcia, their latest trade acquisition, smashed two home runs and the team matched its franchise record for extra-base hits in a single game with 11. And, by the way, Rookie of the Year candidate Daniel Cabrera pitched five innings in sweltering, 92-degree heat to claim another victory, as the Orioles defeated the Kansas City Royals, 12-3, at Kauff- man Stadium.

BaseballRoyals: Placed IF Terry Pendleton (strained left rib cage) on 15-day DL, retroactive to June 11. Recalled P Bart Evans from Triple-A Omaha.CollegeFranklin & Marshall: Announced that William Marshall has been reassigned from director of athletics to special assistant for athletics, and that he will retire in October 1999. Named Peter Van Buskirk interim director of athletics.Furman: Named George Harrelson assistant football coach.FootballRaiders: Signed OL Derrick Graham.SoccerMetroStars (MLS)

Astros: Houston plays 23 of its next 28 games on the road.Brewers: John Jaha left in the fifth inning with tightness in his upper back, and his status is day-to-day. He went 1-for-14 in the series.Cubs: Outfielder Lance Johnson left after three innings because of tightness in his right hip flexor. His status is day-to-day.Mets: Catcher Tim Spehr left in the third inning with a pulled muscle in his right rib cage. He was replaced by Jim Tatum, catching for the first time since July 30, 1995, when he was with the Rockies.

The Oakland Athletics put their pitching staff on parade again last night, but it bore little resemblance to the one that showed up at Camden Yards the previous evening.The Orioles hammered three A's pitchers for 15 hits on the way to a 13-3 victory, providing far more offensive support than rejuvenated starter Mike Mussina would need to become the American League's second 13-game winner.Lest anyone forget, Oakland manager Tony La Russa had set a club record when he sent eight pitchers to the mound in Thursday night's victory.

Designated hitter Harold Baines took his first swings in 10 days yesterday, but he still has a way to go before he is ready to come off the disabled list.Baines, who has been sidelined since he suffered a strained muscle in his rib cage on May 4, swung lightly at balls on a batting tee before last night's game. If all goes well, he might be able to take batting practice later in the week."He swung the bat pretty good and didn't feel a lot of pain," manager Johnny Oates said. "He'll do the same tomorrow, and if there is no pain, maybe he'll take some batting practice Wednesday or Thursday."

MINNEAPOLIS -- The weather may be warming up, but things are beginning to snowball on the beleaguered Orioles, who suffered another significant setback during last night's 4-3 loss to the Minnesota Twins at the Metrodome.The day after Mike Devereaux became the first Oriole to go on the disabled list this year, the hottest hitter on the club joined him on the sidelines.Designated hitter Harold Baines had to be removed from the game after he strained a muscle in the right side of his rib cage during his third plate appearance.

Injured first baseman Glenn Davis batted in a simulated game situation yesterday and appears to be nearing the day when he heads for the minor leagues for a short rehabilitation assignment.Davis hit against former Baltimore Orioles reliever Kevin Hickey, who has been invited to work out with the team until he finds work with another organization."It's not like something's going to happen in the next two days," Davis said. "There are still a few things I need to do to get ready. But today was another test, and I passed it with flying colors."

Designated hitter Harold Baines took his first swings in 10 days yesterday, but he still has a way to go before he is ready to come off the disabled list.Baines, who has been sidelined since he suffered a strained muscle in his rib cage on May 4, swung lightly at balls on a batting tee before last night's game. If all goes well, he might be able to take batting practice later in the week."He swung the bat pretty good and didn't feel a lot of pain," manager Johnny Oates said. "He'll do the same tomorrow, and if there is no pain, maybe he'll take some batting practice Wednesday or Thursday."

Washington -- President Bush's anti-abortion stand, or as some would have it, the lack thereof, is said to have put him in trouble.It's true that he has created lots of confusion by backing a rigid anti-abortion plank in his party's platform and at the same time saying he'd ''stand by'' his granddaughter if she was determined to have an abortion. To add to the confusion, his vice president has made a similar remark and Mrs. Bush has gone even further.Obviously, leadership and mixed signals don't mix. Yet, much as it pains me to say so, abortion-wobbling won't do him any harm in the coming election.